What does chickenpox look like? This question is often of interest to parents of small patients. Many childhood infections occur with skin rashes. To distinguish them from chickenpox, you need to know the main signs of this disease. This infection is widespread and easily transmitted. The disease is considered mainly childish, but an adult can also become infected. The older the patient, the harder the pathology.
Pathogen and routes of transmission
Chickenpox occurs due to the ingestion of the third type of herpes virus inside a person. This microorganism is otherwise called Varicella-Zoster or Herpes Zoster. It affects the cells of the skin and nervous system.
The infection is very easily transmitted. If a person has never experienced this ailment in his life, then the probability of infection in contact with a chickenpox patient is 100%. The virus spreads in the following ways:
- Airborne. This is the most common way of infection. A sick person releases pathogens when talking, coughing and sneezing. If the virus enters the mucous membrane of the respiratory system, it leads to disease. Children in preschool and school institutions are often infected if there is at least one sick child in the team. Affected adults working as educators and teachers.
- Contact. On the skin of the patient, vesicles appear, which are very itchy. When combing, they open. If the contents of the rashes get on the skin of a healthy person, then infection occurs.
- Intrauterine. This route of infection is rare. If a woman develops chickenpox in the latter stages of pregnancy, then she can infect the baby. Usually newborns rarely suffer from this disease, as they are protected from infection by antibodies from mother’s breast milk.
There is a misconception that chickenpox can be infected through third parties who have contacted the patient. But such an infection is impossible, since the virus is unstable to the environment.
After the disease, the patient forms a stable immunity. However, the herpes virus, once it enters the body, remains there forever. It lives in nerve cells throughout a person’s life. With weakening of the immune system, the microorganism can be activated. In humans, the symptoms of the disease resume, but in a very mild form. However, in adults, this is more often manifested as shingles. This pathology occurs in patients who have had chickenpox in childhood. It is also caused by a herpetic infection of the third type. It is important to remember that from a person with herpes zoster, one can also get chickenpox.
Stages of the disease
In medicine, the following stages of chickenpox are distinguished:
- The incubation period. At this time, the virus enters the mucous membrane of the throat and nose and begins to multiply.
- Prodromal period. The infection enters the bloodstream, the immune system begins to respond to a foreign agent.
- The acute stage. The virus reaches the skin cells and roots of the spinal cord.
- Stage of recovery. The microorganism is fixed in the nerve cells and stays there forever.
How contagious is chickenpox? The risk of transmission exists in the incubation period, in the prodromal and acute stages. At the stage of recovery, the patient ceases to be infectious 5 days after the disappearance of the rashes.
Incubation period
The incubation period lasts from 10 days to 3 weeks. At this stage of chickenpox, there are no signs of the disease. But, if you make a diagnosis, you can detect a virus and antibodies in the patient’s blood. However, at this stage, pathology is almost never determined, since a person feels normal and does not consult a doctor.
Prodromal period
The prodromal period lasts 1-2 days. The first signs of chickenpox appear. They resemble the symptoms of a cold or flu. At this stage, it is very difficult to distinguish chickenpox from other diseases.
There is general malaise, headache, loss of appetite, sometimes nausea and vomiting. The temperature during chickenpox rises to 38-39 degrees. The fever lasts from 2 to 5 days.
There is no rash at this stage yet. The virus has not yet reached the skin cells. Therefore, the question of what chickenpox looks like in the prodromal period can be answered that there are no external manifestations of the infection. Small red spots on the chest can only appear, which quickly disappear. But this is a manifestation of general intoxication of the body, and not damage to skin cells.
Chickenpox in children proceeds in a milder form than in adolescents and adults. In a small child in the prodromal period, the temperature can be slightly increased. In adulthood, the initial stage of chickenpox resembles the symptoms of severe flu. There is no inflammation in the throat or runny nose. Extreme weakness, body aches, and headache are felt.
Acute stage
In the acute stage, a rash appears. This is the most characteristic sign of the disease. The temperature also remains during chickenpox, it continues for another 2-4 days.
It is important for doctors and parents of children to know about the nature of the rashes with this disease. First, red spots appear on the skin. This type of rash is called roseola. They cover the entire body and are small in size (up to 1 mm). The patient is worried about severe itching. During this period, there are difficulties in diagnosing the disease. Even specialists sometimes take the first signs of chickenpox in the acute stage for manifestations of other infections or allergies.
However, the period of rashes in the form of roseola does not last long, only a few hours. Very quickly, red spots turn into seals (papules), and then a vesicular rash occurs. What does chickenpox look like during this period? Human skin is strewn with bubbles with liquid.
The patient is tormented by constant itching, because of this scratching occurs on the skin. For this reason, vesicle infection occurs. Pustules are formed on the skin - pustules.
The formation of vesicles and pustules is a characteristic symptom of chickenpox. At this stage of the disease, an experienced infectious disease doctor can easily diagnose the patient’s appearance. Rashes cover not only the skin of the face, body and limbs. They form on the mucous membranes of the mouth and genitals, sometimes in the throat and on the conjunctiva. Vesicles and pustules also appear on the head, because of this, after a disease, severe hair loss is observed. However, this manifestation is more common in adults. Chickenpox in children proceeds in a lighter form and with fewer rashes.
Recovery period
Approximately 6-8 days of illness, a significant improvement occurs. The temperature drops, health is returning to normal. Symptoms of chickenpox gradually disappear. Rashes dry out. They are covered with crusts, which subsequently fall away. Scars form at the site of the rash. Over time, the skin condition improves. For life, only single scars that have formed on the site of large vesicles and pustules can remain. The healing process can take a different time, it depends on the ability of the epithelium to regenerate. People who have had chickenpox in childhood usually have no noticeable marks on their skin.
Forms of the disease
In addition to the classic form of chickenpox, there are varieties of this disease that occur with a peculiar clinical picture. The following atypical forms of pathology exist:
- Rudimentary. Fever and intoxication are mild. The rash may be absent. Sometimes single spots or vesicles are noticeable on the skin.
- Atypical. This form of the disease can occur both easily and severely. In the first case, there is practically no rash, the patient's condition is slightly impaired. In severe form, unusual rashes and a sharp deterioration in well-being are noted.
- Bullous. Bubbles on the skin merge and large vesicles with yellowish contents form. After this form of the disease, the skin does not heal for a long time.
- Hemorrhagic. Usually occurs in patients with blood pathology. It is very rare, has a poor prognosis and can be fatal. What does chickenpox look like in such a dangerous form? Bubbles on the skin are filled with bloody contents. In addition, the disease is accompanied by bleeding from the nose, gums and gastrointestinal tract.
- Gangrenous. This form of the disease is rare, mainly in people with severe immunodeficiency. Around the rash can be seen areas of dead skin. Bubbles are large (up to several centimeters), filled with pus and blood, after opening them, long-lasting ulcers form. The patient's condition is rapidly deteriorating. This form of the disease poses a serious threat to life.
- Generalized. It occurs in patients with sharply reduced immunity or during therapy with corticosteroids. It is characterized by an extremely serious condition of the patient, severe intoxication. Vesicles and pustules are formed not only on the skin and mucous membranes, but also on internal organs.
Possible complications
Chicken pox causes complications in approximately 5% of cases. More often the severe consequences of the disease occur in adolescents and adults, in children under 1 year old, as well as in people with immunocompromised. The following complications of the disease are noted:
- Congenital malformations in newborns. Chickenpox during pregnancy is very dangerous for the unborn baby. As already mentioned, infection in the last stages of gestation can lead to intrauterine infection of the child. If a woman suffered an infection during the period from the 12th to the 20th week of pregnancy, then this can cause abnormalities in the development of the embryo. In addition, infection with chickenpox often causes a miscarriage.
- Secondary skin infection. During the acute stage of chickenpox, a person combes the skin. Microorganisms penetrate the epithelium, abscesses and boils occur. The most serious complication is sepsis. To prevent infection of wounds, patients are recommended to shorten their nails.
- Pneumonia. In adults, chickenpox can be complicated by pneumonia. Cough with sputum, shortness of breath and chest pain appears. But very often the disease is asymptomatic and difficult to detect.
- The virus enters the bloodstream into other organs. Such complications usually occur in adults with severe forms of the disease. Infection through the circulatory system can enter the brain, heart, joints, respiratory system, kidneys. Inflammatory processes occur in the organs.
- Windmill balanoposthitis and vulvitis. These diseases occur in adult men and women. Rashes in the genital area can cause extensive inflammation of the penis or vagina.
- Shingles. This ailment is rather not a complication, but a relapse of chickenpox, since the herpes virus continues to live in the body. Pathology can occur in a person who has suffered an infection, years and even decades after recovery. Weakening of the immune system provokes the onset of the disease. There are rashes on the skin in the area of the roots of the spinal cord and severe neuralgic pains. Usually one side of the body is affected.
In order to prevent the development of complications, it is necessary to consult a doctor at the initial stage of chickenpox. Even if the patient does not have a rash, fever and general malaise should be an occasion to visit a specialist in infectious diseases.
Diagnosis of the disease
An experienced doctor can diagnose chickenpox in the acute stage without much difficulty. The specialist determines the disease according to the anamnesis, clinical picture and the nature of skin rashes.
Laboratory testing is usually not required. In rare cases, when the disease is atypical, and there are doubts about the diagnosis, tests for antibodies and DNA of the virus are prescribed.
Treatment methods
Treatment of chickenpox can only be symptomatic. Medicines that are able to remove the virus from the body are currently not developed. The immune system can fight infection on its own. However, this does not mean that you can leave the disease without medical treatment. Drugs are needed to alleviate the unpleasant manifestations of chickenpox, prevent complications and help the body overcome the spread of infection.
In the early days of the disease, patients have a fever. Do I need to take antipyretics? It is possible and necessary to bring down a fever, but not all medicines are suitable for this. For example, Aspirin and Analgin should not be used. These drugs create too much stress on the central nervous system and liver. The child can be given Panadol or other children's medicines with paracetamol. In adults, the disease often proceeds in a severe form with a high fever. For them, drugs with ibuprofen and paracetamol are suitable.
In the early days of the disease, when the temperature is high, you need to observe bed rest. It is necessary to consume more liquid (tea with lemon, rosehip broth, mineral water) in order to remove toxins from the body.
With chickenpox, the patient is worried about severe itching. To reduce this unpleasant manifestation of the disease, antihistamines are prescribed: Suprastin, Tavegil, Fenistil, Claritin. Adults are helped by wiping with a solution of water with vinegar or alcohol.
In the treatment of chickenpox, antiviral agents are used: Acyclovir, Interferon and Cycloferon. They can not completely destroy the causative agent of the disease, but reduce its reproduction and stimulate the immune system. The use of antibiotics is ineffective, since the disease is caused not by a bacterium, but by a virus. However, in the event of a secondary streptococcal infection on the skin, antibacterial drugs are indicated.
Be sure to use local funds for the treatment of rashes. These include the following antiseptic solutions:
- brilliant green;
- iodine;
- fucorcin;
- potassium permanganate.
However, these drugs have one significant drawback - they stain the skin. It looks unaesthetic, especially on the face. Therefore, recently, doctors have recommended the use of Kalamin Lotion for chickenpox. This product consists of zinc oxide and the natural mineral calamine. The drug does not leave marks on the skin, while drying out the rash, prevents infection and relieves inflammation.
In addition, Calamine Lotion for chickenpox eliminates itching, as it has cooling properties. This safe and effective tool has become widespread these days.
As already mentioned, rashes with chickenpox affect not only the skin, but also the mucous membrane of the mouth. Therefore, it is necessary to rinse several times a day with a weak solution of potassium permanganate.
Chickenpox vaccine
The disease leaves a lifelong immunity. It used to be that it was even beneficial to transfer chickenpox in childhood, as it protects against infection in adulthood, when the disease is much more difficult. However, it has now been established that the virus settles in the body forever and can be activated when immunity falls. A person who has had chickenpox risks a relapse in the form of shingles.
Therefore, it is better to protect yourself from chickenpox infection by vaccination. The vaccines "Varillrix" and "Okavax" have been developed. They include a live attenuated pathogen. Doctors recommend vaccinating children aged 1-2 years. You can enter these drugs and adults. Vaccination is especially recommended for women planning pregnancy, patients with immunodeficiency, and employees of medical and child care facilities. This will help prevent chickenpox and shingles.